ASA Adjudication on Digital Satellite Warranty Cover Ltd

Ad

A direct mailing, for a satellite TV warranty service, was headed "URGENT NOTICE" and stated "YOUR SKY DIGITAL SATELLITE SYSTEM WARRANTY IS DUE TO EXPIRE. WHY WAIT 3 DAYS FOR A SERVICE CALL, WHEN OUR UNIQUE SAME DAY SERVICE IS AVAILABLE FROM ONLY £5.99 PER MONTH Call 0871 XXX XXXX without delay". Further text stated "OUR UNIQUE SAME DAY SERVICE* MEANS THAT IF YOU CALL OUR SERVICE LINE BEFORE 10AM WE WILL ENDEAVOUR TO HAVE AN ENGINEER AT YOUR HOUSE THAT DAY". Small print stated "*service calls dependent on engineer availability and stock levels (Not including weekends or bank holidays). The reverse of the mailing was headed "SKY DIGITAL SATELLITE COVERPLAN".

Issue

The complainant challenged whether the mailing was misleading because:

1. he believed other companies provided a same-day service and therefore the claim "unique" could not be substantiated; and

2. it did not include pricing information for the 0871 number.

The ASA challenged whether:

3. the mailings were properly targeted; and

4. the phrase "Urgent Notice" was misleading.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

1. Digital Satellite Warranty Cover Ltd (DSWC) said they had recently merged with Satellite Direct UK, which meant they had over 400 Sky engineers.  They said,  because of that merger, the warranty industry had only two companies, themselves and their competitor.  They submitted information which showed that their competitor provided call outs within three working days.  

2. DSWC said the new version of their mailing, which would be used once it had been approved by the CAP Copy Advice team, did include pricing information for the 0871 number.

3. DSWC said their data was provided by a third party but they would not provide further details on that company. They said they asked that company to provide them with details of Sky customers who were coming out of their standard year's warranty.  They said they found that some of the data they were given was out of date and included customers who no longer had Sky.  However, they believed that as long as the percentage of data that was incorrect was under two per cent then it was acceptable.     

4. DSWC said they had used the phrase "URGENT NOTICE" for several years.   They believed it was not intimidating or threatening; it was merely a notice that needed urgent attention if a customer's warranty was due to expire.  They provided evidence of other companies that also used that claim, albeit for different purposes.

Assessment

1. Not upheld

The ASA noted DSWC had demonstrated that their main competitor did not provide a same-day service and that that company was their only major competitor.  We noted the complainant had highlighted examples of other companies that were able to provide same-day repairs for satellite systems.  However, we noted those companies did not provide a satellite warranty cover service and we considered that the claim was likely to be interpreted in the context of that warranty service.  Because DSWC had demonstrated that their major competitor did not offer a same-day service we considered that the claim "unique" was unlikely to mislead.

On this point, we investigated the mailing under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness), 19.1 (Other comparisons) but did not find it in breach.

2. Upheld

We noted the new version of the DSWC mailing had been amended to include pricing information for the 0871 number.  However, we were concerned that the current version was still being distributed and it did not include that information.  We noted the cost of calling the 0871 number was up to ten pence per minute and we considered that information should have been included in the mailing.  We concluded that the mailing was misleading.

On this point, the mailing breached CAP Code clause 7.1 (Truthfulness).

3. Upheld

We noted DSWC obtained their customer details from a third party and they maintained that they sent mailings only to Sky customers who were due to come out of their year's warranty.  However, we noted they had not provided any evidence to support that or any details about the company from which they obtained their mailing list.  We concluded that the DSWC had not shown that the mailing was suitable for all recipients.

On this point, the mailing breach CAP Code clause 43.2 (Database practice).

4. Upheld

We noted the "URGENT NOTICE" text appeared in large red letters across the top of the mailing and subsequent text stated "Your Sky Digital Satellite Warranty is due to expire".  However, we considered that, in the context of a mailing for a satellite warranty, even if a recipient's warranty was due to expire, the text "URGENT NOTICE" exaggerated the importance of the mailing.  We concluded that the claim was likely to mislead.  

On this point, the mailing breached CAP Code clause 7.1 (Truthfulness).

Action

We told DSWC to withdraw the mailing.  We told them to remove the claim "URGENT NOTICE" and to ensure their mailings were properly targeted in future.  We welcomed their assurance that they would include pricing information for their 0871 number in their future mailings.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)